And that is Epicurus’ assumption- that the greatest good is achieved in minimising pain.
That’s a solid assumption though: the claims that define ‘god’ come from the religion, not from the supposed being itself; it isn’t necessary to speculate at the possibility of some theological grand plan that isn’t established by the religion’s own lore. Choosing to unnecessarily make someone suffer / experience pain is pretty core to the concept of evil. If it’s integral to reality or some shit, then the being that made that reality either doesn’t care (not all good) or it’s unable to whip up an alternative (not all powerful). Every single attempt to explain away the Epicurian paradox just moves the goalposts from the point currently in the spotlight in a way that opens up one of the other two.
That’s a solid assumption though: the claims that define ‘god’ come from the religion, not from the supposed being itself; it isn’t necessary to speculate at the possibility of some theological grand plan that isn’t established by the religion’s own lore. Choosing to unnecessarily make someone suffer / experience pain is pretty core to the concept of evil. If it’s integral to reality or some shit, then the being that made that reality either doesn’t care (not all good) or it’s unable to whip up an alternative (not all powerful). Every single attempt to explain away the Epicurian paradox just moves the goalposts from the point currently in the spotlight in a way that opens up one of the other two.